“Our founders did not believe that our society could thrive without this kind of moral social structure. In fact, it was our second president, John Adams, who said of our thoroughly researched and developed governing document, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Many well-meaning Americans have bought into the PC speech code, thinking that by being extra careful not to offend anyone we will achieve unity. What they fail to realize is that this is a false unity that prevents us from talking about important issues and is a Far Left strategy to paralyze us while they change our nation. People have been led to become so sensitive that fault can be found in almost anything anyone says because somewhere, somehow, someone will be offended by it.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Compassion, however, should mean providing a mechanism to escape poverty rather than simply maintaining people in an impoverished state by supplying handouts. By doing this we give them an opportunity to elevate their personal situations, which eventually decreases our need to take care of them and empowers them to be able to exercise compassion toward others.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“I believe the only thing that will correct our downward trajectory is the rekindling of the enthusiasm for individual freedom and the reestablishment of the U.S. Constitution as the dominant document of governance. Unless the majority of Americans awaken from their complacency and recognize the threat to their fundamental individual liberties imposed by continued expansion of the federal government, nothing will save us from the fate of all pinnacle nations that have preceded us, those that tolerated political and moral corruption while ignoring fiscal irresponsibility.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“I had a mother who would never allow herself to be a victim no matter what happened… Never made excuses, and she never accepted an excuse from us. And if we ever came up with an excuse, she always said, “Do you have a brain?” And if the answer was yes, then she said, “Then you could have thought your way out of it.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“The best way to respond to distracting personal attacks is to practice bringing the conversation back to the issue at hand. Never fall into the trap of engaging in personal attacks while letting the topic of conversation slip into the background. Doing so allows your opponent to escape the need to explain her position.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Anyone who writes a law that cannot be easily understood by an average citizen is not worthy of leadership. The Constitution, which was written by extremely learned men, is quite easy to understand and should serve as a gold standard for the language and size of subsequent legislation that is introduced.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Saul Alinsky advised his followers to level sharp attacks against their opponents with the goal of goading them into rash counterattacks that would then discredit them. To avoid falling into this trap, those of us who are interested in civil discussion should prepare ourselves to refrain from reacting in fear or anger to those who disagree with us or even attack us.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“If most of the people in the country believe that America is generally fair and decent, it becomes more difficult for Saul Alinsky types to recruit change agents and for those on the Far Left to undermine our Constitution. Hence the constant bad-mouthing of our nation to impressionable young people, preparing them to be ripe for manipulation at the appropriate time.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Many well-meaning Americans have bought into the PC speech code, thinking that by being extra careful not to offend anyone we will achieve unity. What they fail to realize is that this is a false unity that prevents us from talking about important issues and is a Far Left strategy to paralyze us while they change our nation. People have been led to become so sensitive that fault can be found in almost anything anyone says because somewhere, somehow, someone will be offended by it. To stop this, Americans need to recognize what is happening, speak up courageously, avoid fearful or angry responses, and ignore the barking and snarling as we put political correctness to bed forever.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Over the course of time many Americans have forgotten that “we the people” are actually at the top of the food chain as far as authority is concerned in this nation. The Republicans don’t run our nation. The Democrats don’t run our nation. We do. However, by dividing and engaging in political squabbles, we have allowed the government to grow so large and powerful that it has now become the boss, progressively taking charge of all of our lives.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“However, at the moment, I believe the more important thing that can be done with the platform I have been given is to try to convince the American populace that we are not one another’s enemies even if a (D) is by some of our names and an (R) by the names of others. Knowing that the future of my grandchildren and everyone else’s is put in jeopardy by a continuation of reckless spending, godless government, and mean-spirited attempts to silence critics leaves me with little choice but to continue to expound on the principles outlined in my prayer breakfast speech and to fight for a bright future for America.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“All citizens need to arm themselves with a basic knowledge of American history and stay abreast of current events, analyzing them with respect to history. Knowledge is power and at a time when the people are becoming increasingly impotent while the government grows larger and more powerful, it is vital that we arm ourselves with knowledge.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“There have been many stories recently about the bullying epidemic that seems to be occurring in our public school system. We should not be terribly surprised by this because children emulate what they see adults doing. One does not have to look at television for very long or listen to the radio for an extended period before one sees supposedly rational and mature adults vehemently attacking one another, calling each other names and acting like third graders.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“The only reason I can imagine that it would be a good idea for government to foster dependency in large groups of citizens is to cultivate a dependable voting bloc that will guarantee continued power as long as the entitlements are provided. The problem of course is that such a government will eventually “run out of other people’s money,” as Margaret Thatcher once famously said.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“The secular progressive movement in America has been successful in removing all vestiges of faith in God from the public square. The very fact that people hesitate to say “Merry Christmas” to strangers lets you know just how successful they have been. Why are they so determined to remove God from our lives? They recognize that if we have no higher authority to answer to than man, we become gods unto ourselves and get to determine our own behavior. In their world, “If it feels good, do it.” They can justify anything based on their ideology because in their opinion, there is no higher authority other than themselves to overrule them. They have a visceral reaction to the mention of God’s word, because it tears at the fabric of their justification system.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Political correctness has thrown a veil of silence over our important discussions. Rather than asking those with whom we disagree to clearly state their case, we set up rules of political correctness that mandate that their perspective must be the same as ours. We then demonize those with whom we disagree and as a result fail to reach any consensus that might solve our problems.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

“Some feel that it is fair for those with incomes under a certain dollar amount not to pay any federal tax. They say that these people are too poor and it would be a great burden to require them to contribute to the common pot. While I appreciate their compassion, serious problems arise when a person who pays nothing has the right to vote and determine what other people are paying.”
― Ben Carson, One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future

Posted By Chuck Norris On 08/30/2015

President Obama has been campaigning for the Iran nuclear deal like he’s running for a third term. But, unfortunately, because of his naivety and lack of experience on foreign policy, he is completely wrong.

Let me highlight six Obama statements about the Iran nuclear agreement that are complete exaggerations.

1) President Obama said, “I’ve had to make a lot of tough calls as president, but whether or not this deal is good for American security is not one of those calls. It’s not even close.”

“Not even close”?

He just said Friday, “the vast majority of experts on nuclear proliferation have endorsed this deal. The world is more or less united …”

But 200 retired generals and admirals completely disagreed as they sent a letter to Congress last week urging lawmakers to reject the Iran nuclear agreement, which they said “would threaten the national security and vital interests of the United States.”

Are we to assume that most of them are not in any respect “experts on nuclear proliferation”? And are we gullible enough to believe that the commander in chief knows more about military strategy and American security than 200 retired generals and admirals?

And what about other notable experts who disagree? As one editorial piece noted: “Michael Hayden, former CIA director; Dennis Ross, longtime Mideast negotiator; Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; David Albright, former nuclear weapons inspector and president of the Institute for Science and International Security; and Olli Heinonen, the International Atomic Energy Agency’s former deputy director general for safeguards, have all expressed reservations about the deal.”

2) President Obama said, “Because this is such a strong deal, every nation in the world that has commented publicly – with the exception of the Israeli government – has expressed support.”

Mishaal al-Gergawi, managing director of the Delma Institute in Abu Dhabi and a prominent Emirati political commentator, explained: “A lot of the Gulf countries feel they are being thrown under the bus. The Gulf thought it was in a monogamous relationship with the West, and now it realizes it’s being cheated on because the U.S. was in an open relationship with it.”

Obama’s “with the exception of the Israeli government” comment is not only a ginormous snub to our greatest ally in the Middle East but an affront to the fact that Israel has been threatened repeatedly with genocide by Iranian leaders.

Jerusalem is 970 miles from Tehran, which is roughly the distance between Washington, D.C., and the islands of the Bahamas – just 50 miles off the Florida coast. If the Bahamas were a hostile state to Washington with a long history of threatening to eradicate the U.S. capital from the planet, do you think anyone in Washington would concede to give the Bahamas nuclear power?

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is absolutely right when he calls the Iran deal a grave travesty and threat for not only Israel but also a “historic mistake for the world.”He said, “The desire to sign an agreement was stronger than everything else. … Wide-ranging concessions were made in all of the areas which should have prevented Iran from getting the ability to arm itself with a nuclear weapon.”

3) The president initially said International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, inspectors would be allowed to “access any suspicious location” in Iran. He then backpedaled and limited it, saying, “Inspectors will be allowed daily access to Iran’s key nuclear sites. If there is a reason for inspecting a suspicious, undeclared site anywhere in Iran, inspectors will get that access, even if Iran objects. This access can be with as little as 24 hours’ notice.”

But the truth is, Obama’s “anytime, anywhere” inspections is a bunch of smoke-and-mirror sales pitches to get the American public and legislators to buy the agreement.

First, even the president confessed: “And while the process for resolving a dispute about access can take up to 24 days, once we’ve identified a site that raises suspicion, we will be watching it continuously until inspectors get in.”

Now, imagine what a drug dealer could do with a warning 90 days before a law-enforcement raid.

The White House noted: “Right now, Iran has nearly 20,000 centrifuges between their Natanz and Fordow facilities. But under this deal, Iran must reduce its centrifuges to 6,104 for the next ten years.”

Ten years?! That’s two-and-a-half presidential terms or cycles. And we expect the No. 1 terrorist-recruiting Islamic nation in the world to comply and not play a shell game with centrifuges over that 10-year period?

The White House again was wrong when it stated, “International inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will not only be continuously monitoring every element of Iran’s declared nuclear program, but they will also be verifying that no fissile material is covertly carted off to a secret location to build a bomb. … Basically, from the minute materials that could be used for a weapon comes out of the ground to the minute it is shipped out of the country, the IAEA will have eyes on it and anywhere Iran could try and take it.”

So, we are supposed to believe that, despite not being on the ground full-time, the IAEA, will be omniscient and omnipresent so as to detect any movement of any materials at any time outside the country, even though it will fight to get into the country to inspect anything in less than three months? Can you say, pipe dream?!

And if you think the preceding sounds bogus, consider that the Associated Press just discovered a “secret agreement” between the IAEA and the United Nations and reported this about the discovery: “Iran will be allowed to use its own inspectors to investigate a site it has been accused of using to develop nuclear arms, operating under a secret agreement with the U.N. agency that normally carries out such work.”

And, to add injury to insult, guess who will pay for those Iran inspectors to investigate their own nuclear facilities? You guessed: the American taxpayers have to pay more than $10 million a year.

Reuters reported, after the IAEA said it has a severe funding shortfall and would need extra monies, the U.S. mission in Vienna said in a statement: “The United States is committed to working with all (IAEA) member states to ensure the agency has the resources it needs to verify Iran’s nuclear-related commitments under the (July 14 agreement).”

The State Department echoed similar sentiment back in April: “The United States is committed to working with other IAEA member states to provide the agency the resources it needs to continue carrying out this [Joint Plan of Action]-related work.”

Imagine: Washington agreeing to force American taxpayers to pay for a rogue and terrorist-funding Islamic republic to inspect its own nuclear facilities while ignorantly hoping it doesn’t develop a nuclear bomb behind our backs.

We really have forgotten Sept. 11.

(Next week in Part 2, I will give three more examples of Obama’s misguidance and more evidence that the Iran nuclear agreement is bad news for the U.S. and world, how Iran will continue to build a nuclear bomb despite a signed agreement, and, grievous among all the fallout, even if Congress does not sign an agreement, Iran will still be rewarded with at least $50 billion and up to $150 billion additional revenue to continue to fund terrorism against Israel, the West and the U.S. And Obama agrees it is best. Yes, you read that right!)

The daily revelations over classified information finding its way onto Hillary Clinton’s personal email server are raising perplexing questions for former government officials who wonder how classified information made its way onto the former secretary of state’s non-classified server — especially since the two systems are not connected.

“It is hard to move classified documents into the non-classified system. You couldn’t move a document by mistake,”said Willes Lee, a former operations officer for the U.S. Army in Europe and former operations officer for the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

State Department spokesman Alec Gerlach confirmed the two systems don’t connect. “The classified and unclassified system are separate and you cannot email between the two,”Gerlach told Fox News.

The Clinton campaign adamantly denies any emails traversing Clinton’s homebrew server were marked classified at the time. The intelligence community inspector general says “potentially hundreds” of classified emails may be in the mix, but acknowledges at least some were not properly marked.

So if the Clinton denial is to be believed, individuals in her inner circle would have simply typed or scanned classified information into a non-classified system without regard for its contents. In this case, emails would have started in, and stayed in, the unclassified system — albeit improperly, based on the findings of the intelligence inspector general.

But if it turns out emails literally jumped from the classified to the non-classified system — something the State Department claims cannot happen — it would seem to point to Clinton’s staff going to great lengths to create a work-around to do so.

A government employee doing so would commit numerous felonies, according to Bradford Higgins, who served as assistant secretary of state for resource management and chief financial officer from 2006-2009. “A violation, in addition to criminal charges and potential prosecution, would likely mean that person who committed the breach would never again be given a security clearance,”Higgins said.

The State Department has indicated it sees no evidence of this criminal scenario. Classified documents are supposed to be marked, and State Department spokesman John Kirby told reporters at an Aug. 13 briefing “we have no indications” any classification markings were stripped. Clinton’s defense has been that the emails in question were later deemed classified, after they traversed her server.

But Higgins is skeptical. “Emails don’t change from unclassified to classified. The originator of the email decides the classification before it is sent out based on basic protocols, not subsequent readers,” Higgins said. “I believe it would be highly unusual for an unclassified email to later become classified.”

Regardless of how it happened, Lee faulted Clinton and her staff. “It is not as if Hillary Clinton and her staff do not know the rules and the law,” he said. “I think what it is going to come down to is very sloppy, unprofessional procedures,” said Steven Bucci, assistant to former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and deputy assistant secretary of defense who is now at The Heritage Foundation.

While government watchdogs looking into the Clinton emails say classified material was improperly sent or received, so far they have not publicly alleged that emails jumped between systems.

I. Charles McCullough, III, inspector general of the intelligence community, and Steve Linick, inspector general for the Department of State, said in a July 24 statement that of 40 emails the State Department allowed them to review in an audit, four contained intelligence community-derived information that remains classified today. But the information did not contain classified markings or dissemination controls, they said.

They said: “This information should never have been transmitted via an unclassified personal system.” McCullough said, though, that “we were informed by State FOIA officials that there are potentially hundreds of classified emails within approximately 30,000 provided by Secretary Clinton.” He reiterated that while emails they saw were not marked as such, some should have been “handled as classified, appropriately marked, and transmitted via a secured network.”

One of the emails that sparked the FBI probe was sent in April 2011 from Clinton aide Huma Abedin and covered intelligence from three agencies, Fox News first reported. Other emails that contained classified information came from diplomats with confidential material, according to the AP.

Pro-Clinton super PAC Correct the Record, which maintained Clinton’s use of personal email followed the precedent of other secretaries of state and she did not violate any laws, said in a recent statement that government agencies often classify information differently from each other and that “government agencies also are notorious for over-classifying material.”

Another security concern is Clinton attorney David Kendall’s possession of thumb drives, which he recently gave the FBI.

The State Department would not provide details on the documents given to Kendall. “Removable drives need to be approved,” Gerlach said, adding that he cannot get into specific security requirements. “Clinton and her staff may have had the ability to use thumb drives, but that would be unusual at the State Department, and it also defeats the purpose of a top secret computer, a classified printer, or what’s known as a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF)”,Higgins said. A SCIF is a room or building where classified material can be reviewed, designed and built so nothing electronic can go in or out except over secured lines.

Higgins noted other differences in how classified and non-classified systems are handled. “At State, your classified hard drive sits in your safe and only comes out for occasional use and must be returned to the safe before you leave at night,” he said. “Even printing out top-secret needs a top-secret printer, which is carefully monitored.”

He added, “As I recall at State, classified computers didn’t have ports for thumb drives to download secret info.”

The security implication is clear, he said: “Everything on her server has been compromised.”

As the war on Planned Parenthood heats up, so does the Republican divide on how to best go about taking away the organization’s federal funding. Leadership in both chambers of Congress signaled they’re willing to go only so far in their fight to strip the organization of its government dollars—putting them at odds with conservatives who are willing to do whatever it takes. Given past support for pro-life legislation like the 20-week abortion ban, a defund bill would likely make its way through the House unscathed. Republicans in the Senate, however, lack the 60 votes needed to pass pro-life legislation, forcing those who want to take away Planned Parenthood’s $500-million government funding to get more creative.

Here are the four ways the Senate could go about ending taxpayer funding for the group, which has come under scrutiny after the release of a series of videos that show top officials discussing the sale of body parts from aborted babies for research. Planned Parenthood has denied any wrongdoing.

1. Standalone Legislation

At the beginning of August, just before the Senate left for its summer recess, a bill to strip Planned Parenthood of its federal funding fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance. The legislation had the support of 53 senators, with one pro-life senator absent from the vote. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., voted no, a move that allows him to bring the bill back for a vote this fall.

This move signals the possibility that McConnell will bring back the same legislation when Congress returns, but conservatives aren’t crazy about the idea. Even if the bill made it through the House and the Senate, President Obama would likely veto a standalone measure that defunds Planned Parenthood.

This makes any standalone vote more symbolic of the desire to defund Planned Parenthood than practical, because the measure will never be signed into law, therefore the organization would continue to receive its federal funding.

Instead, conservatives who are serious about stripping Planned Parenthood of its government funding say the initiative must be attached to a larger matter.

2. Attaching Planned Parenthood to Continuing Resolution

Every year, Congress must consider a range of what’s considered “must-pass” pieces of legislation. Congress routinely attaches unrelated measures that may not be able to pass on their own to “must-pass bills” in order to pressure acceptance of those measures by Congress and the president. This is why year-end spending bills that prevent a government shutdown are often packed with unrelated measures.

Last year, the spending bill—formally known as a Continuing Resolution—passed with dozens of unrelated measures, such as banning the Obama administration from transferring detainees from Guantanamo Bay to the U.S.

Seeing as government spending runs dry on Oct. 1, conservatives see a ripe opportunity to attach a defund bill to that measure.

“It’s real simple,”Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told The Daily Signal. “You pass the appropriations bill at the amount that everyone’s agreed to. Most likely it will be a CR [continuing resolution] … but you simply say the money that would have gone to Planned Parenthood, we’re going to put in these community health centers. And there’s your bill.”

Jordan was referring to the thousands of community health clinics that provide women’s health care for free or at affordable costs and are qualified to receive federal funding.

The problem with this route is that if Democrats object to the inclusion of such measure—which they’ve signaled to be the case—it could lead to a government shutdown. If Oct. 1 arrives and the president hasn’t yet signed a spending bill, all discretionary spending in the government that isn’t used to protect life or property becomes frozen. If this occurs, Congress will play the blame game. Democrats will say Republicans are prioritizing the defunding of Planned Parenthood over the funding of the entire government, while Republicans will say Democrats are prioritizing the funding of Planned Parenthood over the funding of the entire government.

In 2013, when the government shut down over the Affordable Care Act, many thought Republicans bore the brunt of the blame. Heading into the 2016 election cycle, GOP leaders appear desperate to avoid a similar situation.

House Speaker John Boehner told press he wants the multiple House investigations into Planned Parenthood to play out before stripping the group of its federal funding. McConnell said bluntly the GOP shouldn’t shut down the government over the issue. “We’ve been down this path before,” he said in August. “This is a tactic that’s been tried going back to the ’90s, frequently by Republican majorities that always have the same ending: that the focus is on the fact that the government is shut down, not on what the underlying issue that is being protested is.”

But Jordan, who represents a group of conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus, argues that’s not the case. “No one is for a government shutdown except, it seems, Harry Reid and Barack Obama,” he said. “The clear question is, what’s more important, Mr. Obama: funding Planned Parenthood or paying our troops? What’s more important, Mr. Reid: funding an organization that’s engaged in what looks like criminal activity or funding our veterans?”

3. Attaching Planned Parenthood to Must-Pass Legislation

If conservatives are unable to cast the blame on Democrats and Obama, they have one more opportunity to attach a defund bill to must-pass legislation this fall. In October, Congress is likely to take on the Highway Trust Fund bill, which is another piece of must-pass legislation. As leader of the Senate, McConnell controls the legislative agenda of their respective chambers and gets to decide whether amendments will be allowed in certain pieces of legislation.

In July, for example, when the Senate was voting on a highway bill, McConnell blocked an early attempt to end taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood. At the same time, he attached an amendment resurrecting the controversial Export-Import Bank. Because McConnell’s in charge of procedural rules, those who disagreed with the move couldn’t do anything about it.

For this reason, conservatives would prefer attaching the defund amendment to the must-pass spending bill.

4. Reconciliation

If all other attempts fail, conservatives could invoke a little-known budget strategy at the end of the year called reconciliation. Once the GOP sets the budget for its overall spending levels each year, the Senate is allowed to make policy changes within that budget for standalone measures using reconciliation. To do so under reconciliation, they need only 51 votes instead of the typical 60 needed to pass legislation, clearing an easier path to the president’s desk.

But because this works only for standalone measures, conservatives believe that it would be an easy veto for Obama and, similar to a standalone bill, more symbolic than realistic.

In this case, there’s no risk of a government shutdown, but with less risk comes less reward.

The suspect, identified as Shannon J. Miles, had been in police custody since early Saturday, even as authorities pleaded for the public’s help in identifying the man who fatally shot the sheriff’s deputy in the back in what was described as a “cold-blooded execution.”

Miles criminal history includes charges of resisting arrest, trespassing, evading detention and disorderly conduct with a firearm, Hickman said.

The motive in the Friday shooting, which Hickman described as “senseless and cowardly,” is still unclear, but Goforth appears to have been targeted merely “because he wore a uniform,”the sheriff told reporters. “We found no other motive or indication that it was anything other than that,” said Hickman, adding that he doesn’t believe the suspect and Goforth knew each other.

Hickman said “a big gun … a handgun” was used in the shooting and ballistic tests on a weapon that was recovered matched the one used to kill Goforth.

Residents near the scene of the shooting as well as the tracking of a vehicle used by Miles helped lead investigators to the suspect.

“Our deputies returned to the streets … to hold a delicate peace that was shattered last evening,”Hickman said.

Earlier Saturday, Sgt. William Kennard of the Texas Department of Public Safety said a man “believed to be the alleged gunman” was in custody and being questioned, though he hadn’t been charged. The sheriff said surveillance video shows people drove up to the Chevron station while the shooting was happening, and he asked them to come forward. “This is the kind of thing that drives you right down to your soul,” Hickman said. “It strikes at the heart of who we are as peace officers. …This was just a cold-blooded execution.”

‘Execution-style’ killing

The suspect shot Goforth, 47, while the deputy was filling up his patrol car at the stationjust after 8:30 p.m. (9:30 p.m. ET), Hickman said. “Deputy Goforth was refueling his vehicle and returning to his car from inside the convenience store when, unprovoked, a man walked up behind him and literally shot him to death,”he said. Goforth was shot multiple times from behind and then fell to the ground, where the suspect shot the deputy multiple times again, said Deputy Thomas Gilliland, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.

Goforth, a 10-year veteran of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, died at the scene in what appeared to be “an unprovoked, execution-style killing,” Hickman said. “I have been in law enforcement (for) 45 years,”the sheriff said. “I don’t recall another incident this cold-blooded and cowardly.”

‘Absolute madness’

Investigators believed Hickman was targeted because of his uniform. Hickman said the motive appears to be “absolute madness.”

At a new conference before the arrest was announced, Hickman and Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson talked about the nationwide debate over the relationship between the police officers and the public, with the sheriff referring to what he called “dangerous national rhetoric.”

Anderson said, “It is time for the silent majority in this country to support law enforcement. There are a few bad apples in every profession. That does not mean there should be open warfare declared on law enforcement.”

“When the rhetoric ramps up to the point where calculated, cold-blooded assassination of police officers happen, this rhetoric has gotten out of control,”Hickman said. “We’ve heard ‘Black Lives Matter,’ ‘All lives matter.’ Well, cops’ lives matter too. So why don’t we just drop the qualifier, and just say ‘Lives Matter,’ and take that to the bank.”

After announcing the arrest, Hickman said investigators were still trying to determine a motive. “The general climate of the that kind of rhetoric can be influential on people that do thing like that,” he said.

The gunman, who was captured on the surveillance footage, drove away after the shooting in a red Ford Ranger, authorities said. Authorities said some bystanders called 911 to report the shooting.

About 30 minutes before the shooting, Goforth had investigated an accident, but authorities said it’s unclear whether there was a connection to the attack. As far as authorities know, Hickman said, the only reason Goforth was a target “was because he was wearing a uniform.”

A husband and father

Goforth leaves behind a wife and two children, ages 5 and 12.

“Our hearts go out to them,” Hickman said, asking the community to remember his family in prayer. “In times like these, it’s important to ask for the prayers from this community,”he said. “It strikes us in the heart to simply be a target because you wear a badge.”

A Houston-based nonprofit that supports the children and spouses of officers and firefighters who die on duty, said the group will give $20,000 to Goforth’s family.

After the first news conference about the shooting, held late Friday night, Hickman led a group of law enforcement officials in prayer.

Anderson called the killing “horrifying.”

“It’s an act of cowardice and brutality the likes of which I’ve never seen before,” she said.

Leading causes of officer deaths

Including the attack Friday, 23 law enforcement officers have been shot to death so far this year nationwide, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.

Traffic incidents are the leading cause of officer fatalities in the U.S., followed by shootings.

Affiliate

Blogroll

Alex Jones' INFO WARS. Because there is a war for your mind
The Alex Jones Show is a nationally syndicated news/talk show based out of Austin, TX. The show is syndicated by the Genesis Communication Network on over 60 AM and FM radio stations across the United States, and has a gained a large internet based audien

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

Business

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

Defense Department

Defense One
Defense One delivers news, breaking analysis and ideas on the topics and trends that will define the future of U.S. defense and national security. Our editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new era for defense through the post-war

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

Family

American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

Military

Defense One
Defense One delivers news, breaking analysis and ideas on the topics and trends that will define the future of U.S. defense and national security. Our editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new era for defense through the post-war

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

NEWS

Defense One
Defense One delivers news, breaking analysis and ideas on the topics and trends that will define the future of U.S. defense and national security. Our editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new era for defense through the post-war

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

Opinion

Alex Jones' INFO WARS. Because there is a war for your mind
The Alex Jones Show is a nationally syndicated news/talk show based out of Austin, TX. The show is syndicated by the Genesis Communication Network on over 60 AM and FM radio stations across the United States, and has a gained a large internet based audien

American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame

Defense One
Defense One delivers news, breaking analysis and ideas on the topics and trends that will define the future of U.S. defense and national security. Our editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new era for defense through the post-war

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

Personal

American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

You Version
Bible Translations, Devotional Tools and Plans, BLOG, free mobile application; notes and more

Political

Alex Jones' INFO WARS. Because there is a war for your mind
The Alex Jones Show is a nationally syndicated news/talk show based out of Austin, TX. The show is syndicated by the Genesis Communication Network on over 60 AM and FM radio stations across the United States, and has a gained a large internet based audien

American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame

Defense One
Defense One delivers news, breaking analysis and ideas on the topics and trends that will define the future of U.S. defense and national security. Our editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new era for defense through the post-war

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

ZONATION
AlfonZo Rachel is a Christian conservative social / political humorist. His work is distunguished by his grinning delivery and rapid fire rant style in his video commentaries called, ZoNation on PJTV.com. Check out his work with the play list! – See more

Radio

Alex Jones' INFO WARS. Because there is a war for your mind
The Alex Jones Show is a nationally syndicated news/talk show based out of Austin, TX. The show is syndicated by the Genesis Communication Network on over 60 AM and FM radio stations across the United States, and has a gained a large internet based audien

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

Research

Defense One
Defense One delivers news, breaking analysis and ideas on the topics and trends that will define the future of U.S. defense and national security. Our editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new era for defense through the post-war

Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection went live on October 12, 2008, originally at Google Blogger. We hit our one-millionth visit about 11.5 months later, our second million a few months after that, and since then readership and linkage from major websites have grown drama

The Last Refuge
The Conservative Tree House may be called a Last Refuge for each of us for different reasons. Whatever trail through the woods brought us here, we have shared the turmoil of storms as we have been finding our voices as individuals in this growing communit

The REAL SIDE with Joe Messina
Joe takes the issues… especially the controversial issues (politics, prejudice, religion, illegal immigration)… and brings in people from different sides to share their viewpoint. This is definitely not a fluff piece. And while no one is attacked, the

Spiritual

American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame

Bible Gateway
The Bible Gateway is a tool for reading and researching scripture online — all in the language or translation of your choice! It provides advanced searching capabilities, which allow readers to find and compare particular passages in scripture based on

ZONATION
AlfonZo Rachel is a Christian conservative social / political humorist. His work is distunguished by his grinning delivery and rapid fire rant style in his video commentaries called, ZoNation on PJTV.com. Check out his work with the play list! – See more